In this time-lapse stop motion video, one Kim Pimmel managed to control a series of lights spinning on top of a vinyl record player to the fast-paced electro beat of the new Tron: Legacy theme. Pimmel explains:

The video is stop motion, so every frame is an individually shot photograph. Each photograph is a long exposure photo, with exposures reaching up to 20 seconds in some cases. To control the lights, I used an Arduino controlled via bluetooth to drive a stepper motor. The stepper motor controls the movements of the lights remotely from Processing [computer software]. The light sources include cold cathode case lights, EL wire, lasers and more.

Now is that one of the coolest things you’ve ever seen? Harrison Krix of Volpin Props set aside 17 months to create to most amazing DIY Daft Punk helmet ever made. It lights up and everything! Head over to Krix’s website to find an intensive two-part build archive if you think you’re up for the challenge (or if you’re even slightly interested to see how it was made). Look in the gallery below for a collection of helmet pics and jump after the break for a brief video that speeds through the construction process and reveals the final result. I am blown away right now, for realz.

Let’s travel back in time, shall we? The year is 1984 and the Macintosh Classic is all the rage. 9” (512×342) display, 8 MHz Motorola 68000 processor, 1MB of memory, no HDD, $999. Flash forward to 2010 and you’ve got the $499 iPad. Leave it to a mac enthusiast and do-it-yourself guru to gut the Mac Classic and shove an iPad inside it. Which happens to fit almost perfectly where the original display would sit.

And let’s do it one last time. The year is 1999 and the iBook classic reinvents the laptop scene with a clamshell design. 12” (800×600) display, 300 MHz PowerPC G3 processor, 32 MB of memory, 3.2GB HDD, $1599. Now it’s 2010, so why not remove the display and place a brand new iPad inside. And while you’re at it, take out the janky old keyboard and install a current Apple keyboard in its place.

Ah, the awesome-ness that results when retro and modern unite. Hit up the source links for more images and peek after the break for a video tour of the Mac Classic + iPad.

YouTuber horseattack has managed to construct a printer made of Legos. He describes his work: “Lego felt tip 110″ printer connected to an Apple Mac. This is not a kit you can buy and does not use mindstorms. I designed/built/coded it all from scratch including analog motor electronics, sensors and printer driver, the USB interface uses a “wiring” board.” Now watch the magic unfold in the video above.

One Ryan Hoagland has a created a DIY virtual window of sorts using two 46-inch Panasonic plasma displays, a Mac Pro workstation, a Wii-mote with a custom-built IR-emitting necklace, Bluetooth, and custom software called Winscape. If everything is implemented correctly, it should result in two large virtual windows that could theoretically project any scene you’d like. And thanks to headtracking technology, the windows will create an illusion that you are actually peering inside this virtual realm. Oh, and you can control scene selection with an iPhone app. Intruiged? You can build one of your own virtual landscapes come this July when Hoagland plans to sell basic kits for under $3000. Look after the break for a timelapse video of its construction.

John Coker, a DIY rocket enthusiast, built and successfully launched a pack of Crayola Crayons rockets in the Nevada Desert. This launch event was six years in the making. Though only four of the eight rockets launched, those that did soared 2,928 feet into the air! If you’re interested in how he did it, check out his site. More photos from the liftoff event and the design process in the gallery below.

This rendition of Ben E. King’s “Stand By Me” is one of my favorite music videos of all time. It comes from the award-winning documentary “Playing For Change: Peace Through Music.” What’s so great about it is that it splices together all different kinds of people from around the world singing the song with their own voices and instruments.

Playing for Change is a multimedia movement created to inspire, connect, and bring peace to the world through music. The idea for this project arose from a common belief that music has the power to break down boundaries and overcome distances between people. No matter whether people come from different geographic, political, economic, spiritual or ideological backgrounds, music has the universal power to transcend and unite us as one human race. And with this truth firmly fixed in our minds, we set out to share it with the world.

It’s just so cool how it all fits together; it sounds like all the musicians sat down in a recording studio together! There is this sensation of peace and unity that overcomes you when you listen to the music and watch the videos. And there’s more where this came from. Playing Through Change the album is available on iTunes; the deluxe version includes videos for “Don’t Worry,” “One Love,” “War/No More Trouble” and others. I urge you to download a copy of this album, listen to the music, and watch the videos. This international collaboration showcases the transformative power of music in a way you have likely never seen before.

Note: I am aware this video was published in 2008. In fact the project itself began in 2004. However, the album was released this year and that is when I (and I’m sure many others) discovered it.

So why don’t you do it yourself? Apparently you can transform a standard wall outlet into a USB charging outlet in about thirty minutes for as low as ten bucks. Head over to Instructables to see how it’s done.